Finally Finished!

Nothing feels better than seeing a quilt finished!  Except it still needs quilting.  It is a little hard to deside how to quilt this one.  There are so many small pieces.  I may need to think a while before I start quilting.

Tropical Kansas Album Quilt

Ten or Fifteen years ago I started this Kansas Album Quilt. I finally finished all the blocks. Some I changed from the original blocks in the pattern. And yes, those are purple and pink flowers on a lavender background. It really gives it a tropical look. I don't know what I was thinking at the time. I made a lot of really traditional Album quilts and I think I was needing a break from those colors and decided to go really wild. The quilt is suposed to be put together with just the blocks but I'm trying to decide if it needs sashing or borders. Let's just hope it doesn't take me ten or fifteen years to make up my mind. Hmmm..........

Everyday Best Quilt

I cut out all these little rectangles in July to use when I went on a quilt retreat. I just love it when you take these little pieces of fabric and turn them into..,.... These lovely curved pieces. Of course you then have to sew the curves together. I don't know if I've ever said this before but I'm not fond of sewing curves. It is a real pain! But I did it.....

And then they turned into these wonderful blocks! Very colorful. Now I just hope I can make it into..............

The quilt in this book. I've always loved this quilt, and knew that some day I would have to make it. Well that day is finally here! I will post the picture when the borders are finally finished.

Wish me luck!

Summer Garden

This is what is keeping me too busy to quilt these days. I really love the color we have in June. Soon it will be Hot Hot summer and the flowers will fade until fall when it cools off.

But for now we have Beautiful Color. Thank you Mother Nature!

More Blocks!

I finished 3 more blocks for my Civil War Bride Quilt. I have a few more finished that I need to get pictures of. I've had to slow down to do yard work and guilt has made me dig out a few UFO's that I need to work on too. I think that I just need to finish 3 more blocks and then I will be ready for the borders. I'm not sure if I will follow the pattern for the borders or do my own thing. I really love how it is turning out.

New Blocks Finished

I have had a shoulder problem this winter so I have not been able to quilt or cut out or sit at the sewing machine. It is very frustrating, but I have done a lot of hand applique. I finished my blocks for the Cottage Garden Quilt. I just need to decide on the sashing and borders. And I finished 6 more blocks on my Civil War Bride quilt. I love this quilt, I'm tried to make it with more tradional fabrics.

Civil War Bride Quilt

I came across a blog that had this wonderful quilt and all the ladies were working on it and showing photos of their progress. The pattern is made from an antique quilt called "The Bird of Paradise Quilt". When I saw the blocks I just knew I just had to make it, along with the 30 other quilts I'm working on. So I order the pattern and could hardly wait to start. I finished my first 6 blocks and have 3 more nearly finished. Only 11 more and 4 borders and I'll be done. Maybe some time in 2012?

Signs of Spring

After a really long cold, icy, wet, snowy winter, Spring is finally here! Well we thought is was until it snowed again last weekend. I love daffodils. They are a little bit of color in a very dull brown landscape. Soon the roses will be blooming and we will all be whining about the heat.

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

For the first time since I moved to this part of Texas 35 years ago we have a White Christmas. A Very messy, slick, icy White Christmas! It started to rain the night before Christmas Eve and on Christmas Eve morning it turned to sleet and ice and then to snow. The wind was blowing 45 miles so mostly it was snowing sideways. We were not supposed to get this much. People began to get stranded on the highways. Our small town put up over 400 people in the Jr High and in 2 Church's. The Electricity was off at our house for 3 1/2 hours. Burrrr, it got cold. Lots of people could not get to their families on Christmas day. We were very lucky because the kids live across the street. This photo was taken on Christmas Eve during the snow. I was peeking out the garage door. I could not take pictures out the front or back because the camera lense got covered with snow.This photo was taken by the front door. The Christmas lights are on the shrub (under the snow).

This is Steve at the side of the house 2 days after the snow started. People up north probably don't go outside without coats on but here in Texas we don't know any better.


The trail from the front door is not the side walk, the snow was too deep there to walk so we went through the yard around the snow drifts caused by the wind. You can see my shadow in the photo and no I do not have a coat on either.

During the day the snow started to melt and make a river of water down the street, and at night it freezes up and it is now a solid sheet of ice. This photo is of the street in front of our house. The cars are sliding down the street on the ice. It started melting during the day but at night it froze up again.

I'm not sure if I would like another White Christmas. The deer are coming through the yard and eating all the shrubs they can find. Pretty to watch but very annoying. Merry Christmas Yall!

I bought 2 Pumpkins this weekend and put them on either side of the porch. They were so pretty and Fall looking setting there. My husband went out to get the paper this morning and they were gone. He looked all around expecting to find them smashed in the street. Surprise, Surprise, there they were decorating my Daughters house across the street. My Grandson, Son in Law and Daughter were "Pumpkin Swipers"! They laughed and laughed so I made a little wanted poster and put it up in front of their house right by my pumpkins. Guess who is laughing now!

A Fall Memory

My Husband and I were driving through the country one day so I could get some pictures. We came across this field where his cousin farms and I just had to get a picture of this really old tractor that was left in the field. I blended the photo into the background paper which was perfect for the picture. It was a lovely Fall day.

New layouts

I'm back from the Scrapgirl's Convention in Salt Lake City. I had a blast while I was there and really learned a lot in the Classes. Here are some of the layouts I made in class.

I really like how this one turned out. We made silhouettes from a photo and used it in a layout. I used a photo of Layne and Clayton from an Allstar game. I'm looking forward to trying this again.

This layout was supposed to be a really fast one I had to make with one of the layout templates that the instructor provided. I wasn't as fast as I was supposed to be.

Computer Art

This photo was taken by our daughter when we were on vacation. I have so few photos of my husband and I together because I am always behind the camera. I feathered the edges of the photo and it made it blend really nice into the paper. I made this layout to go on a new mouse pad. I love the way it turned out. I've been working with photos on the computer a lot lately and the more I work at it the better I get. I guess the old saying that practice make perfect is really true. Back to my practice because perfect is a long way off.

New Tote

I've been on a sewing binge sense I returned from the Quilting Retreat. One of the things I've made is this really great tote called the Charm Party Tote. The pattern is by Penny Sturges and is a really nice tote that you make with a charm pack (pack of 5" squares).

This is the inside of the bag. It has pockets on both sides. The padded handles are real comfortable. The cute guy wearing Texas Longhorn Orange and holding the bag for me (windy day) is my favorite grandson.

I Won a Prize!

I Won a Prize! I received this wonderful stack of fabric goodness in the mail from Let Me Sew Love. I entered a drawing on her website and visited her online Etsy Store and I WON. It is 12 half yard pieces of fabric that came beautifully wrapped and look so pretty stacked together that I haven't been able to cut into them yet. I fondle them when I walk by and dream of what to make with them. I keep changing my mind. They are so pretty. It is a fabric from Paula Prass' new collection, Summer Soiree. I may fondle for another week and then the scissors come out.

Quilt Retreat

I'm getting ready to go on a Quilt Retreat in a few days. I've got the pieces cut and ready to sew for 4 different quilt projects. I'm not sure if I will get this much finished. I might have to do more stitching and less talking this time. A retreat is always so much fun!

New Tote

I made this really cute tote. It is the larger one on the pattern. I think it is more the size of a large purse that a tote. It was quick and easy. I did put a lining in it that wasn't on the pattern (Hot Pink!). I really like the outside pockets. If I make another I will definitely make the straps a little wider.

Cell Phone Pouch

I finished two new cell phone pouchs. These are easy to make with leftover scraps from other projects. I wrote about the pattern in a previous post Cell Phone Pouch.

My Bag

This over the shoulder bag turned out really cute. I will make more of these.

Quilt Along

I have all my blocks put together for the "Quilt Along Quilt" that I've been working on. I really love how the fabrics look together. It is so bright and fresh looking. I need to decide if it needs a border or not and get it quilted. I never look forward to quilting in the summer.

Here is a close up of the quilt. This was really a fast fun quilt. Beautiful fabrics like these look great even in a simple quilt. I will definitely make another sometime.